crushed oil line.....need help

[bell]

ok the oil cooler line (pressure side) on my 85' carrera has 2 flat spots on it which is causing some overheating......need to fix this before the drive to hershey.
elephant lines or new lines are simply out of budget right now, other than finding a decent used line what are my options, i've searched the archives and found some decent info but "patches" are frowned upon.

these lines run less then 20lbs of pressure and only need to sustain <250 degrees........so the physics of why not to make my own has me thinking.......

in a bind here, thanks in advance
and if someone has a "cheap" used line please pm me asap

[jstgermaine]

Bell, which line? The straight (return side) or the one with the jack bump out? I have the latter if you need it.

[Joe Bob]

Take it off....heat it up with a propane torch and tap it out....

[bell]

the strait one....pics from pelican

[bell]

Originally posted by mikez
Take it off....heat it up with a propane torch and tap it out....

it's totally flat......non salvagable......thanks fred baker porsche body shop

[Joe Bob]

You'd be surprised....mine looked like trash.

Take it off and try it....other wise cut it out and graft another piece in....a decent radiator shop should be able to do it....

[bell]

due to the flatness i already cut it.....
i can have it grafted together.......but i've heard of lines fixed like this "cracking"......anything special i need to know? what type of pipe etc......don't want this to fail
and thanks

[Joe Bob]

"I" would take another piece of line....then put sleeves on each side, flux the heck out of them and then solder them....works for water lines with 100psi....

[bell]

that's what i was thinking......flux and solder.....
as long as it's mounted using rubber "bushings" at the mounts it shouldn't get stressed too much right?

[Joe Bob]

Shouldn't.....

[bell]

ok......i have plumbing skills......so shouldn't be a problem, should i stick with brass tubing or is there an alternative? is copper more solid than brass? just a thought

[Joe Bob]

Copper and brass are compatible....so, whatever is available....

[bell]

cool........thanks for the help.....gonna do this for temporary.....should be able to find a new line at hershey or from the bbs.
now.....out to the garage and finish my interior

[Jadams1]

Bell, hope your repair goes well. How did that line get crushed?

[Emission]

Post pics if you can. Sounds interesting.

[palle7688]

Floor jack?

[bell]

my guess is a floor jack from the dealer body shop that fixed my car last summer after the right side got smashed.....only explaination since they are the last people to touch my car other than me.....this was in aug/sept.
i noticed it was running hot towards the end of last summer. like a moron didn't check the oil lines when i picked up the car or have pics of that area......lesson learned......always check your lines

i'll have pics......i just need it to get me through my vacation after hershey

[walt]

I was prepared to do the solder repair on mine but worried the joint would fail from heat, vibration etc. I eventually bought new from the dealer for $272.

Check around at some local scrap yards but if you do find one - flush it out first.

[bell]

ok here we are so far............
$19 in parts. already had the torch.
although the soldered joints don't look super pretty the joints soldered so far are solid and don't leak with the "water" test.
i was hoping to find some more gradual 90 degree bends but no luck.....these will work fine, the solder melts 415-425 degrees so i know i'm cool there.
here are some pics with it loosely installed, i still need to solder the front fittings.






PS......i still need to find a used line.....this is ONLY TEMPORARY so i can make sure everything is in order for the hershey trip......i plan on having an oem line on by then

[Jim Smolka]

Your repair looks interesting.
IMHO, copper may have not been the best material to use as it gets brittle with heat. If you still have your orginal lines, you can graft on a piece of pipe from an old engine line pipe or T-Stat to Oil Tank pipe (I have a free one of these if needed).